Hot Ticket: Blues singer Bonnie Raitt performing at Heinz Hall

AP - In this Oct. 22, 2008 file photo, singer Bonnie Raitt performs at the close of The Women's Conference in Long Beach, Calif. Raitt will be releasing 'Slipstream,' her first album in seven years on April 10, 2012. AP

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Traveling by Jeep, boat and foot, Tribune-Review investigative reporter Carl Prine and photojournalist Justin Merriman covered nearly 2,000 miles over two months along the border with Mexico to report on coyotes — the human traffickers who bring illegal immigrants into the United States. Most are Americans working for money and/or drugs. This series reports how their operations have a major impact on life for residents and the environment along the border — and beyond.

American blues singer and songwriter Bonnie Raitt is bringing her Slipstream Tour 2013 to Heinz Hall, Downtown, on Nov. 11.

Raitt, touring with special guest Marc Cohn, put out her 19th album, “Slipstream,” in 2012 and launched her own label, Redwing Records. “Slipstream” sold more than 250,000 copies last year, making it one of the top-selling independent albums, and earned Raitt her 10th Grammy for best Americana album.

Raitt's best-known classic hits include “Nick of Time,” “Have a Heart,” “Something to Talk About” and “I Can't Make You Love Me.”

The exhibit “In Medias Res,” featuring new works by Marlana Adele Vassar, opens at The Gallery 4 in Shadyside with a free reception from 7 to 11 p.m. Nov. 9.

Vassar is a Pittsburgh-area artist and University of Pittsburgh alumna. Largely self-taught, Vassar balances style and substance. Since her first exhibit with The Gallery 4 in 2012, Vassar has devoted her time to community art projects and a solo exhibit at the August Wilson Center, Downtown.

Using figures as the primary subjects, she weaves symbolism and surrealism throughout her art, creating images that are personal yet open to interpretation. With “In Medias Res” (Latin for “in the midst of things”), Vassar conveys human relationship through expressive, colorful figurative studies.

The exhibit continues through Nov. 30. The Gallery 4 is at 206 S. Highland Ave. Regular gallery hours are 1 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.

Owen Benjamin is coming to town! Owen Benjamin is coming to town! OK, so it doesn't roll off your tongue like “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” but the Improv chain is celebrating its 50th anniversary of making America laugh by bringing in a really big show — or at least a really tall show.

All 6 feet, 7 inches of the multitalented Benjamin will be on display at the Pittsburgh Improv for shows at 8 p.m. Nov. 7, 8 and 10 p.m. Nov. 8, 7 and 9 p.m. Nov. 9 and 7 p.m. Nov. 10.

You may know Benjamin from his Comedy Central Special, “High Five ‘til it Hurts,” his guest-correspondent duties on “The Jay Leno Show” or his role on the TBS show “Sullivan and Son.”

Two films with a particular interest to Pittsburgh will be screened this week:

• The experiences of Pittsburgh-area World War II vets are the subject of a new film by Point Park University photojournalism professor Christopher Rolinson. “The Veterans Breakfast Club,” a 30-minute documentary featuring 14 vets talking about their experiences in the war, will premiere at 4 p.m. Nov. 11 — Veteran's Day — at the JVH auditorium on the Point Park campus. The event is free and open to the public.

A panel discussion will follow the screening, featuring psychology professor Robert McInerney, history professor Ed Meena and Rolinson.

• “A New York Heartbeat,” which was shot in the Pittsburgh area in 2010, will be screened next week at the Oaks Theater in Oakmont. The film, which stars Eric Roberts, Pittsburgher Amadeo Fusco and Rachel Brosnahan (Netflix “House of Cards”), is a love story mixed with a mobster drama. Showtimes are 3 and 7 p.m. Nov. 10 and 7 p.m. Nov. 13. Admission is $6 to $8.

“Plaid Tidings” offers the best of “Forever Plaid,” wrapped up in a nifty package with a big Christmas bow on top, in this latest show from the CLO Cabaret.

The boys are back to do their Christmas special with holiday standards that have been “plaid-erized.” At first, they aren't sure why they've returned, but a phone call from the heavenly Rosemary Clooney lets them know that they're needed to put a little harmony into a discordant world.

Sprinkled among the Christmas offerings are audience favorites, such as a three-minute version of the “Ed Sullivan Show,” featuring the Rockettes, the Chipmunks and the Vienna Boys Choir, and a Plaid Caribbean Christmas.

The show runs Nov. 7 to Jan. 12 at the Cabaret at Theater Square, Downtown. Admission is $34.75.

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